Christmas In London 2018: A Guide To Festive Events, Ice Rinks, Christmas Food, Films And More

Looking for things to do in London at Christmas? Whether you live here or are visiting the capital over the holiday period, it's a great place to get festive, with plenty of different events taking place, from ice rinks to Christmas markets, Christmas lights and festive food and drink. And that's before we even think about New Year's Eve.

We'll be adding more details for Christmas 2018 closer to the time, so keep checking back.

Countdown to Christmas in London

Trafalgar Square is where you'll find the huge Christmas tree, donated to the people of Britain by the city of Oslo each year, and it's lit up beautifully from early December. On weekday evening and weekend afternoons lots of different groups get involved in carol singing beneath the tree, making it a very festive place to be.

Looking for things to do on Christmas Eve? Here's a guide to what's going on over Christmas Eve 2018. Bear in mind that many shops, restaurants, cafes, bars, museums and galleries may close earlier than usual on Christmas Eve.

Christmas shopping in London

Lots of Christmas markets, festive fairs and yuletide festivals proliferate throughout the capital in December to help make Christmas shopping jolly. Here's our guide to London's 2018 Christmas markets and fairs.

WINTER WONDERLAND 2018:Winter Wonderland opens in Hyde Park (22 November 2018-6 January 2019) featuring a huge fun fair, ice rink, games, Christmas market and seasonal food and drink. There are special screenings of The Snowman for Christmas 2018. It's free to enter but gets very busy and everything you do inside will cost you apart from walking around and soaking up the atmosphere.

ICE SKATING: Winter ice skating is always hugely popular in London. Pretty ice rinks pop up at places like the Natural History Museum, Canary Wharf, Somerset House and Hampton Court Palace from October right through until February. Here's our guide to where to get your skates on over Christmas 2018.

CHRISTMAS AT KEW 2018: Christmas At Kew is a twinkly light trail, winding through Kew Gardens after dark. As well as the lights — which are always stunning — there are food stalls and Victorian funfair rides. You need to book in advance.

CHRISTMAS AT LONDON ZOO: 2018 is the first time the team behind Christmas at Kew have taken their expertise to London Zoo, creating a one-mile light trail among the zoo's grounds once the animals have gone to bed. If this floats your boat, find out about other winter lights festivals in London this Christmas.

ALICE IN WINTERLAND: New for 2018, this lantern festival (28 November-5 January) takes over Southwark Park with larger than life lantern versions of characters and scenes from Alice in Wonderland — plus there's a Mad Hatter's tea party and a chance to see Father Christmas.

CHRISTMAS IN LEICESTER SQUARE: A traditional Christmas market, Santa's grotto, and food and drink stalls all form part of festival Christmas in Leicester Square. It's organised by the people behind Udderbelly Festival, so there are plenty of shows in a 1920s speigeltent too. Here's a look at the 2017 festival:

ENCHANTED WOODLAND: Syon Park's Enchanted Woodland (9-25 November 2018) will be illuminated once again with colourful lights, all situated around an ornamental lake, and inside the historic arboretum.

FESTIVE EVENTS NEAR LONDON: We love London, but sometimes we see something so good, we have to leave the capital for a while. These events are near enough to London to warrant a day trip, and look well worth it. See also: Christmas things to do in Kent.

Christmas Day in London

Christmas Day can be a magical time to explore the capital if you get up early enough. After about 11am there's a surprising amount of people about and more and more pubs and restaurants open each year. It's still a special day in the city however. No tubes, buses or trams will be running but if you can get into town by walking, cycle hire, taxi or your own transport, here are some of the things going on.

An increasing number of central London cafes, pubs and restaurants open on Christmas Day but the decision to do so can be last minute.

Spending New Year's Eve 2018 in London

It's never too early to make your New Year's Eve plans — plenty of parties and events sell out months in advance. Here's our guide to this year's New Year's Eve events. It contains daytime events and parties that go on well into the night to see in 2019 with a bang.